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‘Legislative Activity’

Absent congressional action to delay the end of the space shuttle program, the Atlantis orbiter will make its final flight to orbit at 2:20 pm EDT tomorrow. The weather forecast for the STS-132 launch is 70% favorable. The 12-day mission will take a Russian mini research module and other equipment and supplies to the International Space Station (ISS).

Under the current plan, only two more shuttle flights remain: STS-133 (Discovery) in September and STS-134 (Endeavour) in November.

The Subcommittee on Strategic Forces of the House Armed Services Committee (HASC) cut $182 million from the $9.9 billion FY2011 request for unclassified national security space programs today. A committee press release lists the following additions and reductions:

NASA Administrator Charlie Bolden told the Senate Commerce Committee today that he will do “everything in my power” to ensure that the commercial launch companies at the heart of President Obama’s new plan for NASA succeed. The magnitude of that commitment was the source of some contention at the hearing.

One of the resounding themes of yesterday’s Space Law and Policy 2010 symposium was that of the need for holistic solutions – that take into account the role of a variety of players- to solve the regulatory issues facing the space community.

A National Research Council (NRC) study committee reports that NASA’s basic research facilities are in a state of decline. Committee co-chair John Best says that it is “imperative that NASA restore and maintain its basic research laboratories” or jeopardize its ability to meet major mission goals according to an NRC press release.

UPDATE: Rep. Mollohan lost the primary. He will remain in Congress for the rest of this year, of course, but the extent to which his lame duck status affects the outcome of the debate on NASA’s FY2011 funding and the Obama plan for human space flight is an unknown at this point.

ORIGINAL STORY: Rep. Alan Mollohan (D-WV) is in a tight primary race today. With anti-incumbent fervor shaping political races this year, Rep. Mollohan’s close to 30 years in the House may work against him rather than for him as would be typically true. He chairs the House Appropriations subcommittee that funds NASA. How a loss today would affect the congressional debate over NASA’s new plan for human spaceflight is unknown. Even if he wins today, he faces Republican opposition in November. His opponent today, state Senator Mike Oliverio, is quoted as saying that “Congress is broken” and “we need to clean House.” Stay tuned.

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⭐@NASAHubble's LEGUS program captures dwarf galaxy UGC 685 - these galaxies are so small & contain only a fraction of the stars than galaxies like the Milky Way, but the ill-defined shape & hazy structure give an appearance of a swarm https://t.co/XI7o8RQWJj via @NASA

Breakdancin' 🎵 @NASA's Mars 2020 goes for a spin, rotating clockwise and counterclockwise at about 1 rev per minute on a spin table of @NASAJPL's Spacecraft Assembly Facility to establish its center of gravity https://t.co/pF8nieMLbo via @NASA